ESXi / PCI Passthrough Question

tntcoder

tntcoder

tntcoder

Soldato
Joined
7 Apr 2004
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Hey,

Is there any reason why I can't make a virtualized router (DNS/NAT etc) on an ESXi server?

Specifically, can I simply add a second NIC to the server (hooked up to a bridged dsl modem) and use PCI passthrough on the router guest VM?

Sounds easy enough, but is it that simple?

Thanks,
 
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The hardest part of this is getting a card that works in esxi :)
If you have that then you just create a VM with 2 network adapters bridged to there dependant network cards
 
Yup nothing about routing requires talking direct to the physical NIC. In fact nowdays most routing is done of VLAN interfaces that don't physically exist anyway.

ESXi supports most of the mainstream Broadcom and Intel Pro adapter chipsets, so finding a NIC shouldn't be too hard. I've used both the Pro1000 GT and PT with great success. they're not the cheapest but by no means the most expensive cards you can buy. Quite a few good deals on our favourite auction site :)
 
Just in case you didn't know, ESXi 4 doesn't support 100mb NICs (or at least out of the box it doesnt)

Bit annoying really as i have several dual port Pro/100's knocking about - not everything needs gigabit you know...
 
Ah Shame about the 1gig NICs :(

Thinking about it, would ESXi actually need to support the second NIC?

If it has 1 supported NIC already as the first interface, and im simply using abstract PCI passthrough to get the 2nd NIC to the guest VM which would support it? Would that work or would it just create a mess that wouldn't be able to speak between the two interfaces? hmmm :p
 
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You COULD do it router on a stick but really not advisable.
The only sensible way to do it with one NIC would be to use tagged VLANs, which requires a switch that supports 802.1Q. But then all you're doing is moving the duty of splitting the interfaces to the switch rather than the box. Not to mention even an 8 port managed switch supporting 802.1Q properly would cost more than a gigabit NIC... so a bit self defeating.
Just get the NIC ;)

PCI passthrough is a tad iffy for that sort of thing. More hassle than it's worth.
 
Does esxi support pci passthrough? I'm interested in having one of my vms able to see a pcie video capture card for instance.
 
mikeh501 said:
Does esxi support pci passthrough? I'm interested in having one of my vms able to see a pcie video capture card for instance.
Click to expand...

Iirc it does, but it's been a while since I've seen/heard about it, so I may be talking nonsense. Lol.
 
Not sure why you would want to pass a device like a NIC directly to the VM, that's more for supporting legacy hardware.

You basically want a virtual router? Have 2 physical NICs in the server then attach those 2 NICs to separate vSwitches. Give the VM 2 vNICs- one for a network from each vSwitch and away you go. That would give you the virtual router linking two separate physical networks together.
 
So I've had a look in esxi and can't see where you let a host see pci card, any ideas? Lot of people who seem to think it can be done here but lacking detail lol.
 
mole90 said:
Not sure why you would want to pass a device like a NIC directly to the VM, that's more for supporting legacy hardware.

You basically want a virtual router? Have 2 physical NICs in the server then attach those 2 NICs to separate vSwitches. Give the VM 2 vNICs- one for a network from each vSwitch and away you go. That would give you the virtual router linking two separate physical networks together.
Click to expand...

Thanks, that sounds like the best solution :)

mikeh501 said:
So I've had a look in esxi and can't see where you let a host see pci card, any ideas? Lot of people who seem to think it can be done here but lacking detail lol.
Click to expand...

You go into the settings for a VM in VSphere and select add hardware, then you can add a PCI device.
 
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